Peace for One Day: The Power of Friendship

Voice 2:And I’m Marina Santee. This programme uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

Voice 3:‘My experience of conflict is this. The people who are involved really would like to have even one day of peace.’

Voice 1:This is the opinion of Mary Robinson. She is the former United Nations High Commissioner. She is talking about September the twenty first. For many years, people have celebrated peace on this day. And in 2002, the United Nations officially declared this day as the permanent International Day of Peace. We will hear more about this day later in the programme. But first, we will hear the powerful story of two men living in peace, in an area of war - the Middle East.

Voice 2:‘They think we are insane,’ says Rami Elhanan. He is talking about himself and his friend - Mazen Faraj. Rami is an Israeli Jew. And Mazen is a Palestinian Arab. They have both experienced great pain in the Middle Eastern conflict. Sadly, this is usual. Many people have been killed in the conflict. But what is unusual is this. These two men are sitting side by side - in Dheisheh refugee camp, near Bethlehem. This is where Mazen has lived his whole life. And this is where Rami is visiting his friend.

Voice 1:Rami’s daughter was killed by a Palestinian man. She was buying books for school. A Palestinian man used a bomb to kill himself - and everyone around him, including Rami’s daughter. She was only fourteen years old. Rami has every reason to hate Palestinians.

Voice 2:Mazen’s father was carrying food from the store one day. An Israeli soldier thought he was carrying a weapon. So the soldier shot him dead. Mazen has every reason to hate Israelis.

Voice 1:So how did these two men become friends? Separately, they heard about a group called the Parents Circle-Families Forum. You may have heard other Spotlight programs about this group. The group is for Israelis and Palestinians who have lost family members. At first, the idea of a group for Israelis and Palestinians seemed like a very strange idea. Rami said:

Voice 4:‘Most Israelis do not meet Palestinians ever’.

Voice 1:However, both men still decided to join the Parents Circle-Families Forum. Mazen remembers the first time he heard Rami speak:

Voice 5:‘I looked at him and thought, “What does he know about suffering? What does he know about pain? This man is talking about peace?” Then he started to talk about his daughter. He spoke about what had happened to his family. I was very ashamed of my thoughts.’

Voice 1:It was in the group meetings that Rami also began to change his thinking. He said:

Voice 4:‘I met Palestinian families who had lost people they loved. And I saw Palestinians as human beings, not as pictures in newspapers, or objects of history. But I saw them as real people, coming towards me, shaking my hand for peace, holding me, crying with me.’

Voice 1:Mazen and Rami began working with the Families Forum. And they became good friends. Today, they work together for peace. They visit schools. This is powerful, Rami said:

Voice 4:‘An Israeli and a Palestinian step into a classroom together. They call each other brother. They are not fighting each other. They are not trying to compare the size of their pain. They are not trying to say who started what, or who is to blame.